12 COURT OF APPEALS
13 EDUCATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS BOARD
14 ELECTIONS BOARD
15 EMPLOYE TRUST FUNDS
16 EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS COMMISSION
17 EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS DEPARTMENT
18 ETHICS BOARD
19 FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
20 GOVERNOR
21 HEALTH AND EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES AUTHORITY
22 HEALTH AND FAMILY SERVICES
23 HIGHER EDUCATIONAL AIDS BOARD
24 HISTORICAL SOCIETY
25 HOUSING AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
26 INSURANCE
27 INVESTMENT BOARD
28 JOINT COMMITTEE ON FINANCE
29 JUDICIAL COMMISSION
30 JUSTICE
31 LEGISLATURE
32 LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR
33 LOWER WISCONSIN STATE RIVERWAY BOARD
34 MEDICAL COLLEGE OF WISCONSIN
35 MILITARY AFFAIRS
36 NATURAL RESOURCES
37 PERSONNEL COMMISSION
38 PUBLIC DEFENDER BOARD
39 PUBLIC INSTRUCTION
40 PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
41 REGULATION AND LICENSING
42 REVENUE
43 SECRETARY OF STATE
44 STATE FAIR PARK BOARD
45 SUPREME COURT
46 TECHNICAL COLLEGE SYSTEM
47 TOURISM
48 TRANSPORTATION
49 TREASURER
50 UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN HOSPITALS AND CLINICS AUTHORITY
51 UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN HOSPITALS AND CLINICS BOARD
52 UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN SYSTEM
53 VETERANS AFFAIRS
54 WORLD DAIRY CENTER AUTHORITY
55 WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
56 OTHER
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
*** Analysis from -4594/2 ***
Commerce and economic development
Buildings and safety
Under current law, the department of workforce development (DWD) administers the fair housing law. This bill transfers from DWD to the department of commerce the responsibility for administering that portion of the fair housing law that requires certain multifamily housing to be designed and constructed so as to be accessible to persons with disabilities. Specifically, under the bill, the responsibility for setting accessibility standards, for reviewing plans and specifications for proposed covered multifamily housing and for granting variances from those standards is transferred to the department of commerce. The responsibility for receiving, investigating and hearing complaints charging that there has been a violation of those accessibility standards, however, remains with DWD.
*** Analysis from -4549/4 ***
Economic development
This bill authorizes the department of commerce to make a grant to a consortium consisting of a business and a higher educational institution in Eau Claire County for establishing a distance education center for technology and engineering instruction.
The bill also authorizes the department of commerce to award grants for capitalization of revolving loan funds for local and regional economic development and to make loans for specific projects consisting of the renovation or construction of buildings, or the purchase of land, buildings, machinery or equipment, for the purpose of fostering economic development in an area.
In general, a recipient of a grant or loan must submit a plan detailing the proposed use of the grant or loan, enter into a written agreement that specifies the conditions for the use of the funds and agree to submit a report on the use of the funds after they have been spent. A loan recipient must contribute matching funds for at least 25% of the project cost.
*** Analysis from -4828/1 ***
Current law authorizes the department of commerce to award grants to businesses in rural municipalities for the start-up, modernization or expansion of a dairy farm or other agricultural business. Grants are limited to no more than $200,000 in the aggregate in a fiscal year. This bill changes the maximum aggregate amount for those grants to $500,000 in a fiscal year.
*** Analysis from -4505/2 ***
Current law directs the business development assistance center in the department of commerce to act as an ombudsman for brownfields redevelopment projects and to assist the department of commerce in administering the brownfields grant program. (Brownfields are abandoned or idle industrial or commercial facilities or sites that are not expanded or redeveloped because of actual or perceived environmental contamination.) Current law contains an appropriation under which moneys from the petroleum inspection fund are to be used for activities of and staff for the business development assistance center in the department of commerce. This bill changes the purpose of that appropriation to administration of brownfields redevelopment activities.
*** Analysis from -4561/2 ***
Correctional system
Current law requires the department of corrections (DOC) to establish fees for juvenile correctional services provided by DOC. Current law also requires the department of health and family services (DHFS) to include DOC's fees in DHFS' uniform system of fees and to collect the fees owed to DOC. This bill requires DOC to establish its own uniform system of fees and to collect the fees owed to DOC for the juvenile correctional services provided by DOC.
*** Analysis from -4757/1 ***
Courts and procedure
Circuit courts
Under current law, the county of venue (the county in which a proceeding before the court assigned to exercise jurisdiction under the children's code and the juvenile justice code (juvenile court) takes place) must pay reasonable compensation to a guardian ad litem (GAL) appointed for a child in such a proceeding. This bill permits the juvenile court to order the child's parents to pay all or any part of that compensation and to pay the fee for any expert witness used by the GAL. Under the bill, if one or both of the child's parents are indigent, or if the juvenile court determines that it would be unfair to require a parent to pay, the juvenile court may order the county of venue to pay the GAL's compensation and the fees of any expert witness, in whole or in part. If the juvenile court orders the county of venue to pay because a parent is indigent, the juvenile court may order the parents to reimburse the county, in whole or in part, for the payment.
*** Analysis from -4686/1 ***
Under current law, the chief justice of the supreme court may appoint certain persons to serve as temporary reserve judges, including persons who have been supreme court justices, court of appeals judges or circuit judges. Temporary reserve judges perform judicial duties on a day-to-day basis as the chief justice directs. Currently, a temporary reserve judge receives a per diem payment for his or her services of $243.49, which is based on a per diem payment of $225 in 1993 increased by the same percentage increase as the total percentage increase in circuit judges' salaries authorized during each 12-month period ending on August 1.
Under this bill, the per diem payment for a temporary reserve judge is $255.66 until August 1, 1998, when the per diem payment is increased by the percentage increase authorized for circuit judges' salaries.
*** Analysis from -4707/3 (part) ***
Justice
This bill provides immunity from civil liability for any governmental unit or public official, employe or agent for any act or omission committed in reliance upon a written opinion of the attorney general. The opinion may relate to any subject. The bill does not specify whether the opinion must be published.
*** Analysis from -4707/3 ***
Other courts and procedure
This bill makes changes in current law relating to litigation brought by prisoners (persons incarcerated, imprisoned, confined or detained in a jail or prison) and to petitions for writs of habeas corpus. Among the changes are:
Limitations on commencing lawsuits
Currently, a person with a disability who is entitled to bring a lawsuit may, in certain cases, have the period for commencing the lawsuit extended until a certain length of time after the person's disability ceases if the person had the disability at the time the event giving rise to the lawsuit occurred. Current law allows former prisoners to bring a lawsuit within 5 years after they are no longer in prison. This bill removes prisoner status as a disability for purposes of extending the period permitted for bringing a lawsuit. The bill requires a prisoner to bring a lawsuit related to prison or jail conditions for which there are administrative remedies available, including a petition for a writ of certiorari, within 30 days after the event giving rise to the lawsuit occurs or the lawsuit is barred. (A petition for a writ of certiorari involves asking a court to review an action taken by an administrative agency or a lower court based on the information used by the agency or lower court and without presenting any additional information to the reviewing court.)
Limits on remedies
This bill provides that a petition for a writ of certiorari is a prisoner's only method of challenging certain official actions. Currently, a prisoner may use any available legal remedy to challenge official actions, including a summons and complaint, writ of mandamus or writ of certiorari. Under the bill, the decisions that may only be challenged using a petition for a writ of certiorari are those related to the following: 1) prison discipline; 2) revocation of probation; 3) denial or revocation of parole; and 4) the disposition of a complaint regarding prison or jail conditions.
In addition, under the bill, a prisoner may not recover damages for mental or emotional injury unless the prisoner shows that he or she suffered a physical injury as a result of the same incident that caused the mental or emotional injury.
Exhaustion of administrative remedies
Currently, a prisoner is prohibited from commencing a civil lawsuit against department of corrections (DOC) personnel until the prisoner has exhausted all administrative remedies established by DOC by rule. This bill expands that prohibition to apply to all civil lawsuits by prisoners related to prison or jail conditions against any person for which there are administrative remedies available.
Limit on filing of lawsuits by certain persons
Except when a prisoner is in danger of serious injury, this bill requires a court that receives a request from a prisoner for permission to commence a civil lawsuit without the payment of court costs to deny that request if the prisoner has had a court proceeding in which he or she was allowed to commence the lawsuit without paying the court costs dismissed on 2 or more occasions because the proceeding was frivolous, was used for an improper purpose (such as harassment), sought monetary damages from a person immune from such damages, or failed to state a claim upon which relief could be granted. The bill requires a court to hold a prisoner in contempt if the court dismisses the lawsuit for one of those reasons and if the prisoner has had a previous lawsuit dismissed for one of those reasons. The contempt sanctions include prohibiting the prisoner from filing any lawsuit for 2 years or until any monetary penalty imposed for the contempt is paid, whichever is earlier. The bill also requires a court to dismiss any pending lawsuit brought by a prisoner in which court costs are unpaid if the prisoner is released from prison and fails to make arrangements for the payment of those costs within 30 days after being released.
Waiver of answer
Currently, if a person, including a prisoner, commences a lawsuit, the defendant in the action has 20 days after service of the complaint to answer the complaint. In certain cases the state has 45 days to answer a complaint. Under this bill, a defendant in a lawsuit commenced by a prisoner is not required to respond to the complaint. Under the bill, the failure to respond to a lawsuit related to prison or jail conditions is an affirmative defense against all of the allegations made in the prisoner's complaint. The bill requires the court, if it determines that the plaintiff may prevail on the merits, to order the defendant to respond to the complaint.
Costs and fees in prisoner actions
This bill provides that no costs may be awarded against an employe of the state or a public agency who is acting in his or her official capacity or against the state or a public agency in a lawsuit brought by a prisoner related to conditions of imprisonment. If the state or public agency prevails in a lawsuit brought by a prisoner related to conditions of imprisonment, the bill provides that the prisoner must pay the costs. If a prisoner requests permission to bring a lawsuit without the payment of costs, the bill requires the prisoner to provide a copy of the statement that summarizes how much money the prisoner's custodian is holding on behalf of the prisoner and to submit an affidavit showing that he or she is unable to pay the costs and that he or she has paid all previously assessed costs.
If the prisoner's account is insufficient to pay the full costs, the bill requires the court to take the full amount in the account as a partial payment of the costs. The bill requires the agency having custody of the prisoner's account to freeze that account and use any deposits made into that account to pay the remainder of the costs. The bill allows the court to waive these requirements if the prisoner is in danger of serious physical harm.
